This is a GREAT guest post by my bloggy pal Melissa at Saving With A Working Mom!
When I hear the word stockpiling I used to get the picture of bears or squirrels saving up for winter. Now when I hear it I see a room full of 3,000 rolls of toilet paper. But what is stockpiling really and should you do it?
The answer to the second question is simple…ABSOLUTELY YES! The answer to the first question is a little harder to nail down. So before we say what it is, let’s look into why you should do it.
The way to be successful with using coupons and getting things for cheap or free is to use those coupons in conjunction with a sale. And even more than that, you want to use your coupons when the product is on sale at its lowest possible price. This is why it’s so important to save coupons and have them at the ready when the sales happen. Stores have schedules and routines called ‘sales cycles’ to govern when they put things on sale. There are also cycles of when certain coupons come out. Once you have been couponing a while you will definitely see a pattern in both sales and coupons.
Some people even suggest keeping a chart of sales on products you buy most frequently so that you can identify when a product is at its optimum price for couponing and stocking up.
For example, right now Pillsbury biscuits, crescent rolls, and cinnamon rolls are all on sale at Kroger for $1.25 each. This is a very low price point for that product. Last week they were on sale but the sale price was $1.99. Still a sale price but not nearly as good as the current price. There are also quite a few coupons for all these products right now. This is a good time to stock up or “stockpile” this item if it is something that your household uses frequently.
So the first reason to stockpile is that the sale price combined with your coupons is the lowest price and it won’t be at this price again for probably 6 weeks or more. So you’d want to stock up with an amount that would get your family through to the next big sale cycle. If you use this product daily you definitely want to get as many as you could. When stocking up, definitely think about how much your family would use the product to help you know how many to buy. Also think about expiration dates and whether the item has a long shelf life or can be frozen.
Another reason people stockpile is the unstable economy. If you have lost income in your family or have had financial hardships, you know how devastating it can be even if just for a short time. Having a “stockpile” of goods that you got for cheap or free can help you focus your finances on other things during a financial hardship relieving a little stress in a time that is already full of strife.
And with the Holidays coming up, a third reason to stockpile should be fairly obvious. The Gift of Giving. Many of the people who use couponing to create really large stockpiles are very generous with the fruit of their labor. Why get 100 deodorants even if they are free? To send overseas to soldiers or hand out to homeless shelters.
The biggest reason I think there is to stockpile at least a little, is that stockpiling is how you save the most money. Before couponing, I would get close to payday and have very little in my pantry or refrigerator. Every time I went to the store I had to buy everything. This means I had to buy things that weren’t on sale *gasp* and things that I didn’t have coupons for *double gasp*. Because I had to buy everything each time, my grocery bill was pretty high. When I started couponing and stocking up on things when they were on sale, I began to see my grocery budget begin to fall. I went from spending at least $200 twice a month for a big grocery shop, and probably another $100 for little stops in-between paydays. Now, for my family of 4, I can usually keep my big shopping trips under $100. On top of that I rarely have to make the in-between shopping trips unless I’m getting fresh meat or produce, or going to stock up on a particular sale.
Now we can revisit the question of what is a stockpile. It doesn’t have to be that 3,000 rolls of toilet paper. I personally don’t have room or want to take care of a stockpile that has thousands of products, worth tens of thousands of dollars. But you can stockpile without building a storage room onto your house. I have what I call my “mini” stockpile. I have a cabinet in my hallway with a stash of shampoos, deodorants, toothbrushes, air freshener, and other health and beauty items that I’ve gotten either for free or for dirt cheap (like $1). I do not have to buy these for a long while and I’ve even given some away when guests have come and forgot deodorant or a toothbrush. I’ve made care packages for my nieces. It’s plenty to do that with, but it all also fits neatly in one cabinet. I have enough cleaning supplies to keep my house sparkly (funny they don’t work unless you actually use them, bummer). And I also have a “mini” stockpile of pasta, spaghetti sauce, canned vegetables, cereal, frozen vegetables, and other long lasting food items that I buy when they are on sale. If I can get Ragu for $1 or less I buy at least 10. When the Kraft Easy Mac’s were on sale for $.49 I bought 30. They fit in my kitchen on two large shelves and everything is where I can make sure I use it before it goes bad.
So you can “stockpile” without being extreme. And even though it sometimes gets a bad rap, I think you should stockpile to whatever scale you are comfortable with. It can be an extremely positive thing financially, mentally, and even spiritually.
So those are my thoughts on Stockpiling and how it can save your family money, time, and stress. What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear them.
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